April Outing: Le Weekend - tomorrow @ 2:15

Several of you have emailed asking why I hadn't yet let you know the time we're meeting to see Le Weekend tomorrow. The answer is simple: Until the weekday screening times are posted on Monday, I cannot let you know. In the past, I've often found that screening times posted or listed in the newspaper before Monday are inaccurate.

So here we go: The only screening that will work for us time-wise is 2:30. The next one, at 4:50, won't work because it gets us home too late if we've chosen to eat after the film.

So let's meet near the box office at the Varsity Cinema (Bay and Bloor) at about 2:15. Afterward, instead of going to Scaccia as usual, some members have asked for a change. So we're going to try the Bloor Street Diner, which is the cafeteria-style spot one floor below the cinema. No need to let me know if you plan to nosh because there's no need to make a reservation.

Hope to see you tomorrow,

--
Terry

April Outing: Le Weekend

I know we just saw the March film a few days ago, but April is fast approaching and a movie I think most of us would really enjoy just arrived in Toronto. If you can wait to see it until Tuesday, April 1, please do so.

It is Le Weekend, an English comedy about an empty-next couple who revisit Paris, where they honeymooned long ago. Below are a synopsis and trailer.

Le Weekend is playing at the Varsity, but I'll have to let you know the time to meet later on.

Movie Info

In Mr. Michell's magically buoyant and bittersweet film, Jim Broadbent and Lindsay Duncan play a long-married couple who revisit Paris for a long weekend for the first time since their honeymoon, in hopes of rekindling their relationship-or, perhaps, to bring it to an end. Diffident, wistful Nick (Broadbent) and demanding, take-charge Meg (Duncan) careen from harmony to disharmony to resignation and back again as they take stock and grapple with love, loss, regret and, disappointment, in their own very English way. When Meg and Nick run into their insufferably successful old friend Morgan, an American academic superstar with a fancy Parisian address played with pure delight by Jeff Goldblum, their squabbles rise to a register that's both emotionally rich and very funny. 

Directed By: Roger Michell

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lmbbrIe80Fs

--
Terry 

March Outing: ANOTHER CHANGE OF PLAN

Sorry to say, once again the Coming Attractions website was incorrect. One Chance did not arrive in Toronto today after all. So once again I had to scramble to find a new film that would appeal to the majority of Movie Club members.

Hope I'm right in choosing The Grand Budapest Hotel, a zany story with a serious underlying theme, as described by its director, Wes Anderson, in an interview in today's Toronto Star: http://www.thestar.com/entertainment/movies/2014/03/13/wes_anderson_shares_secrets_about_making_the_grand_budapest_hotel.html

Here is a synopsis and a link to the trailer:

Synopsis: THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL recounts the adventures of Gustave H., a legendary concierge at a famous European hotel between the wars, and Zero Moustafa, the lobby boy who becomes his most trusted friend. The story involves the theft and recovery of a priceless Renaissance painting and the battle for an enormous family fortune -- all against the back-drop of a suddenly and dramatically changing.

Director:Wes Anderson

Cast:Ralph Fiennes, F. Murray Abraham, Mathieu Amalric, Adrien Brody, Willem Dafoe, Jeff Goldblum, Harvey Keitel, Jude Law, Bill Murray, Edward Norton, Saoirse Ronan, Jason Schwartzman, Léa Seydoux, Tilda Swinton, Tom Wilkinson, Owen Wilson, Tony Revolori, Larry Pine, Giselda Volodi, Florian Lukas, Karl Markovics, Zack Volker Michalowski, Neal Huff, Bob Balaban, Fisher Stevens

Trailer: http://videos.cineplex.com/All-Videos/2842418703001/The-Grand-Budapest-Hotel-Trailer-1/Video/

If you'd like to see The Grand Budapest Hotel, let's meet near the box office at the Varsity Cinema (Bloor & Bay) about 15 minutes before the 2:30 screening on Tuesday, March 18. Afterwards, those who wish to eat and chat will head downstairs to our usual Italian restaurant. PLEASE TELL ME IF YOU'RE PLANNING TO GO TO SCACCIA BY NO LATER THAN NOON ON MONDAY, MARCH 17, so I can make a reservation for the correct number people.

--
Terry

March Outing Will be THIRD Tuesday

Well, fellow Movie Club members, no films with our names on them arrived in time for the second Tuesday of March. Plus, some of us will be busy attending LIFE's March Mingle that day anyway.

So let's make it official. This month's outing will be on March 18 - cinema and time TBA. 

 

What will we see? I polled members about potential interest in seeing One Chance and while not a lot of you responded, the majority of those who did said yes. And one member who already saw it at a film festival says it's terrific. My previous post included a synopsis and trailer for the film.

So there we have it: The Movie Club in Winter, when anything can happen - or not.

--
Terry

March Outing Postponed

Well, folks, I just can't see anything we're likely to like, and haven't already seen, arriving in cinemas by the first Tuesday in March. So I think we should once again postpone until something good does hit Toronto.

I'm considering seeing One Chance, the much-praised film about Paul Potts, the tenor who, after a lifetime of feeling like a nonentity, surprised everyone by winning Britain's Got Talent. I know one of our members absolutely refuses to see it, but I'd love to get opinions from others.

SYNOPSIS for One Chance:
From the director of The Devil Wears Prada, ONE CHANCE is the remarkable and inspirational true story of Paul Potts, a shy, bullied shop assistant by day and an amateur opera singer by night. Paul became an instant YouTube phenomenon after being chosen by Simon Cowell for "Britain's Got Talent." Wowing audiences worldwide with his phenomenal voice, Paul went on to win "Britain’s Got Talent" and the hearts of millions. Fresh from celebrating his Tony Award-winning Broadway run in "One Man, Two Guvnors," BAFTA winner James Corden (THE HISTORY BOYS) stars as Paul Potts and is supported by an acclaimed ensemble cast that includes Julie Walters (MAMMA MIA!, CALENDAR GIRLS, BILLY ELLIOT), Mackenzie Crook (THE PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN), Colm Meaney (GET HIM TO THE GREEK), Jemima Rooper (KINKY BOOTS), Valeria Billelo (PAZZE DI ME) and rising star Alexandra Roach (THE IRON LADY).

TRAILER for One Chance: http://trailers.apple.com/trailers/weinstein/onechance/

Feb. 11 Outing: The Monuments Men

Thanks for your patience in waiting until the second Tuesday of the month to go see The Monuments Men at the Varsity Theatre (Bay & Bloor) on Tuesday, Feb. 11, for the 1:20 screening. So let's gather, as usual, near the box office about 15 minutes earlier. Afterward, those who wish to nosh and chat will go downstairs to our usual Italian restaurant.

The reviews have been tepid but, as always, let's not forget that those are only opinions. This topic is immensely important, with contemporary echoes today, when priceless art is being destroyed and/or threatened in several warring countries. And I think we can agree that George Clooney's film (he directed, co-wrote, co-produced and stars in what is obviously a labour of love) is a special treat to people of our vintage. Some of us remember World War II and the rest of us have racked up enough years and wisdom to value our cultural heritage.

Here are links to two fascinating articles that give a lot of background facts on which the movie is based: 

http://www.thestar.com/entertainment/2014/02/06/art_imitates_life_work_of_real_monuments_men_is_on_display_throughout_europe.html 

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/02/arts/design/not-all-monuments-men-were-men.html?action=click&contentCollection=Movies&module=RelatedCoverage&region=Marginalia&pgtype=article 

If you haven't viewed the trailer for the film, here it is:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CreneTs7sGs   

Don't forget to NOTIFY ME BY MONDAY NOON, FEB. 10, if you plan to go to the restaurant, so I can make a reservation for the correct number.

Terry

January Outing: Hold the Date!

A film that sounds ideal for many Movie Club members is arriving on Christmas Day. But if you want to see August: Osage County together, hold off seeing it until January 7. I'll let you know where and when closer to the date.

Meanwhile, here's a synopsis, cast and director list and a link to the trailer:

August: Osage County

A look at the lives of the strong-willed women of the Weston family, whose paths have diverged until a family crisis brings them back to the Oklahoma house they grew up in, and to the dysfunctional woman who raised them.

Director:

 John Wells

Stars:

 Meryl Streep, Dermot Mulroney, Julia Roberts, Benedict Cumberbatch, Chris Cooper and many other of our favourites.

Trailer: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1322269/

Terry